Steptoe Expands Legal Talent Team with Two New Hires in Attorney Development
Steptoe continues to expand its legal talent team, reflecting its increased emphasis on holistic attorney development.
Khara Kelsch will serve as Manager of Coaching and Career Development, focusing on individual coaching, group training, workplace skill development, mentoring programs, and general career growth. The move reflects the increased emphasis that law firms are placing on providing career growth and development for their attorneys that sit alongside the more established technical legal skills development.
Kelsch received her J.D. and her B.S. from Cornell University, and was a corporate lawyer in Boston before focusing on attorney development and coaching. Prior to joining Steptoe, she was also the Director of Career and Professional Development at Hofstra University School of Law and an Attorney Development Manager at Goodwin Procter. Kelsch was certified as a professional coach by the Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching and earned Career Coaching Professional Development Gold from the NYU School of Professional Studies.
Kelsch’s appointment comes on the heels of another recent addition, Lindsay Daniels. Daniels serves as Manager of Legal Talent Learning and Professional Development, focusing on technical skill development and training programs, as well as attorney assessments. Daniels received her M.S. in Teaching from Fordham University, and her B.A. from Macalester College. She was a teacher before moving into the attorney professional development and recruitment space. Most recently, she was part of the legal talent team at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton.
Both Kelsch and Daniels report to Shauna C. Bryce, Chief Legal Talent Officer and Chief Diversity Officer at the firm. “As we continue to navigate challenges ushered in by the pandemic and new ways of working, Khara and Lindsay will help our associates develop the skills they need to thrive. Lindsay brings an educator’s perspective to professional development, including designing courses and thinking about educational milestones. Khara brings an executive coach’s perspective to career development, including coaching on workplace success and thinking about how we can help our lawyers achieve their career goals,” said Bryce. “I’m thrilled to have Khara and Lindsay on board. These initiatives will also reinforce the firm’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion by ensuring all our attorneys have the tools they need to be successful.”
As part of its recent learning and development efforts, Steptoe has more than doubled the number of CLE training programs it hosts per year. Additionally, the firm is building a one-on-one lawyer coaching program, expanding its lawyer integration and mentoring programs, and building a series of academies to prepare lawyers for success at every stage of their careers.
About Steptoe
In more than 100 years of practice, Steptoe has earned an international reputation for vigorous representation of clients before governmental agencies, successful advocacy in litigation and arbitration, and creative and practical advice in structuring business transactions. Steptoe has more than 500 lawyers and other professional staff across offices in Beijing, Brussels, Chicago, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Washington. For more information, visit www.steptoe.com.
The diversity of the firm is a critical factor in its success. The majority of Steptoe’s nine offices are managed by women; the majority of Steptoe’s practice groups have women as leaders; the firm’s fourteen-person elected compensation committee includes six women; and the firm’s nine-person elected executive committee includes three women. The firm’s eight-person professional business services leadership is equally diverse, with half the c-suite made up of women, including three women of color, and other leaders who openly identify as LGBTQ+.
